COLUMNIST: “The naked issue”

I recently did a photo-shoot with a guy friend of mine I’ve known for four years which was so amazing. During the shoot, I decided to go semi-nude which means that I covered my boobs with my hand and hair and I had shorts on. The problem only started when I thought of posting the photo on social media. We human are so judgemental, you know how you post something and there is always someone putting you down and preaching morals. in other words, humans are creatures of “PHD” and it is a huge problem when it comes to encouraging individuality and confidence.
So this got me thinking, I went to Sun City in March with my friends and one of them took a picture of me in a bikini which I posted on Instagram and there was not a problem. A bikini is equivalent to just wearing nothing-of course I still don’t understand why underwear is different to a bikini. Anyway what I’m getting at is that when I look at the photos of me in a bikini and the one with boobs covered, the bikini one looks bare. Perhaps it is the idea of a guy standing in front of a half-naked girl taking pictures and asking yourself if he was aroused or not (he is my ex so there isn’t anything he hasn’t seen).
I’m bothered by the fact that what people, especially women that I know might think of me given the fact that judgements come naturally to us and it does not matter how strong you are, negative comments always break the person aimed at. Sometimes I also think about professions, does it mean that if I want to be the president of this country one day I shouldn’t be in a bikini while I still can? I shouldn’t embrace being a young woman? I shouldn’t wear whatever it is that I want to wear? Why do I care so much?
My photo is the representation of being young, excited, relentless, fearless, proud to be a young woman in Africa and most importantly it’s all about being comfortable in my own skin because I appreciate how I look like. This is just to encourage women to be comfortable with who and what they are. I would like women to stop making themselves feel better by putting down the next person (fellow women), to stop asking for permission to be who they are, to stop looking in the mirror hoping to see someone different, seeing only flaws and how they want to change them. Your body is your temple, appreciate it, love it, flaunt it, celebrate it, you will never have another one.
In doing so, send me your photo with a list of the things you hate about it and all the things you love about it too to: karabomasedi@yahoo.com AND HERE IS MY PHOTO
by Karabo Masedi
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